Hungary is not only “moving forward”, but also ahead – as far as prices are concerned – of KecsUP
THE People’s word looked up what it costs all over Europe. Crystal sugar in Belgium, cooking oil in Austria, milk in Germany are also cheaper than here, and part of the price explosion is still ahead of us.
On the whole, Western prices are higher than Hungarian prices, but for quite a few foods, even at current prices, they are more expensive to purchase in Hungary, such as in Belgium or Spain. Explaining the situation: a Hungarian shopper could buy sugar in Belgium, rice in Spain or France, and sunflower oil in Austria more cheaply.
The comparison is influenced by the current situation due to the forint-euro exchange rate change, which indicates that even the poorest in Hungary have to spend a similar amount on food as Austrian, German or French customers with much greater purchasing power. Sunflower oil costs 1.74 euros here, while in Austria it costs 1.19. With the 1.7 euro percent UHT milk, we are ahead of several countries with the price of 0.9 euro: in Spain, it is similarly 0.78 in the Carrefour supermarket chain, and 0.79 in Germany.
It may not seem like a big difference at first glance, but if we look at the ratio compared to average incomes, we get a huge difference. The food price explosion is the most severe in Hungary, according to the figures of the EU statistical office. By August, Eurostat recorded an average increase in food prices in the EU of 14 percent compared to the same period last year, while in Hungary the price increase was two and a half times higher, at 34 percent, far surpassing the average of 15-20 percent of the regional neighbors.
In Hungary, the price of bread is rising the fastest in the EU – based on the price level of 2015, a loaf of bread was on average 30 times more expensive by the end of the year, and by August it was more than four times more expensive, 127, than seven years ago. The process has not stopped yet, and the Hungarian Bakers’ Association has not denied that further increases are coming in October. József Septe, the president of the bakers association, said:
“Flour prices have almost tripled, energy prices, wages and logistics costs have increased very much.”
The prices of various meats, eggs, vegetables and fruits, and alcoholic beverages will also increase by double the EU average. According to the communication, Brussels and “the failed sanctions” can do this. Viktor Orbán said in the parliament last week: “My answer to the question of when the rise in food prices will end is when the sanctions. As soon as the sanctions are over, food prices will drop immediately.” He did not give an explanation as to why the price of food did not jump exactly in the other EU countries that also voted for sanctions.
According to László Molnár, the CEO of GKI, this is a propaganda ploy. Hungarian inflation has always been outstanding, this is not a modern phenomenon. The fact that food prices have gone so high now is due to Hungarian influences, he said.
According to the CEO of GKI, a price increase of at least 15-16 percent is expected for food. The prices are increased by the drought, the weakness of the forint, the rise in import prices, and what remains is the explosion in the price of fertilizers, the increase in the price of plant protection products, and it is not known how much the long-term effect of the explosion in energy prices is, he added.